This invention relates to an optical waveguide branching unit and method of making such a unit, which unit has an optically interconnected light waveguide arrangement to which external waveguides are to be connected so as to be in optical waveguide communication with the waveguides of the branching unit.
Branching units which may operate, for example, in accordance with the displacement principle, are disclosed in an article in Applied Optics Vol. 16, 1977, pages 2195-2197. Branching waveguide arrangements comprising convergent, fused optical fibers are disclosed in an article in Applied Optics Vol. 16, 1977, pages 1794 to 1795. A branching unit, which operates in accordance with the beam divider principle, has been disclosed in copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 093,519, filed Nov. 13, 1979, which issued as U.S. Pat. No. 4,317,699 and was based on German Application P No. 28 51 679.
In all these branching units the light waveguides project laterally from a body portion, which portion basically consists of a substrate carrying the waveguide arrangement and a cover. These light waveguide ends are positioned and fixed by means of adhesive in sockets secured to an associated housing. This mounting arrangement involves an extremely labor-intensive procedure. External light waveguide cables can be connected to these sockets by means of matching plugs so as to establish optical communication between the external light waveguide cables and the waveguides of the branching units.